Advocate slapped cost of Rs 25,000 for professional misconduct

Noting that the court cannot sit back and watch this abuse of court’s jurisdiction, Justice P T Asha said, “Today, we are faced with falling standards in the profession where an unscrupulous few have started commercialising this noble profession and professional ethics have taken a back seat.”

As per the case, advocate N Ponnuswamy was initially engaged in a suit involving the non-payment of rental arrears. But his clients decided to terminate Ponnuswamy’s services and appoint another lawyer K Krishnamoorthy instead.

Following this, the new advocate was engaged after Ponnuswamy endorsed that he had no objection to the withdrawal and re-assignment of the case brief to another advocate.

But notwithstanding this, he filed a petition against his clients as well as the advocate hired before an additional district judge in Coimbatore, claiming that he ought to be paid legal fees to the tune of Rs 56 lakh and that until such time, they cannot engage another lawyer.

Aggrieved by the demand the former clients filed a revision petition challenging Ponnusamy’s plea.

When the plea came up for hearing, the Judge wondered as to how the Additional District Judge has numbered in view of the peculiar way Ponnusamy had drafted his petition.

The judge then on holding that Advocate Ponnuswamy has reduced the status of the noble profession to that of a commercial venture, said that the cause of action as claimed by Ponnusamy does not exist.

“An advocate is a vital part of the justice dispensation system. In addition to being a professional, they are also officers of the court. Their conduct therefore should not only be impeccable but above reproach,” Justice Asha added.